Guiding device for a punched record support of a reading or punching apparatus



Dec. 2,1969 5. cERu-r-n ETAL 3,481,521

GUIDING DEVICE FOR A PUNCHED RECORD SUPPORT OF A READING on PUNCHING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 20, 1967 INVENTORS GIOVANNI CERUTTI FRANCO CRETAZ BY 7 @W AGENT United States Patent 3,481,521 GUIDING DEVICE FOR A PUNCHED RECORD SUPPORT OF A READING OR PUNCHING APPARATUS Giovanni Cerutti, Ivrea, and Franco Cretaz, Pont Saint Martin, Italy, assignors to Ing. C. Olivetti & C., S.p.A., Ivrea, Italy, a corporation of Italy Filed Sept. 20, 1967, Ser. No. 669,131 Claims priority, application Italy, Sept. 20, 1966, 21,860/ 66 Int. Cl. G031) 1/56 US. Cl. 226-89 3 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A guiding device for a punched record support comprises a pair of plates between which the support is fed step by step, said plates being bodily slidable from a closed position to an open position in a direction perpendicular to the support, guiding means 'being provided for laterally guiding the support and for preventing same from coming out laterally from said plates as long as said plates are in said closed position. The plates are normally retained in the closed position against the urge of a spring by a latch, which is manually releasable to cause the plates to be displaced to the open position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a guiding device for a punched record support of a reading or punching appara-tus, comprising a pair of mutually secured plates between which said support is fed step by step, said plates being bodily displaceable from a support guiding position to a support accepting position for allowing said support to be inserted therebetween.

There are known guiding devices of the above type. A known device comprises a lower plate secured to the machine frame through which the feed pins project toward the tape, and an upper plate connected to the lower plate by a hinge parallel to the feed direction of the tape. For reading or punching the tape, this latter must therefore be vertically displaced to enter the pins into the holes of the tape.

In another known device the two plates are bodily movable and the lower plate is connected to the machine frame by a hinge perpendicular to the feed direction of the tape. By tilting the plate about the hinge the pins are brought below the lower plate, whereby the tape may be laterally inserted.

Nevertheless all the known devices are unable to guide the tape laterally, whereby the operator is required to pay much attention in order not to damage the tape.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION These and other disadvantages are obviated by the guiding device according to the invention, which is characterized by means for slidably mounting said plates to be bodily displaced in a direction perpendicular to said record support, said plates being normally retained in said closed position against the urge of a spring by a latch manually releasable to cause said plates to be displaced to said support accepting position, guiding means being provided for laterally guiding said support and for preventing same from coming out laterally from said plates as long as said plates are in said support guiding position.

This and other characteristics of the invention will become apparent from the following description of a preferred embodiment of the invention and from the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a right hand rear exploded perspective view of a guiding device according to the invention incorporated in a tape reading apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a left hand partial longitudinal sectional view of the reading apparatus and guiding device of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION With reference to FIG. 2, the numeral 47 indicates the tape to be read, which is adapted to be fed between a pair of plates 151 and 152 (FIG. 1) mutually secured by a screw 153. A pair of pins secured to the plate 152 engage a pair of holes 149 to prevent one of the two plates 151 and 152 from being rotated with respect to the other around the screw 153. The plates 151 and 152 are provided with suitable longitudinal slots 154, to allow the passage of five sensing pins 46 (FIG. 2) mutually adjacent transversely to the tape 47, and a set of feed pins 76 secured to a slide 74 and located along the tape feeding direction. The slots 154 have such a length so as to allow the pins 46 and 76 to be displaced one step while the tape is read by the pins 46.

Each pin 46 is integral with a corresponding slide 42, having a notch 43 slidable in a slot of a frame 44 secured to the slide 74, a spring 48 urging each slide 42 upwards. In turn the slide 74 is secured to a bar 77 guided into a pair of vertical notches 78, only one of which is shown in the drawings, each notch 78 being provided on a corresponding stationary bar 79. The bar 77 is normally urged by two springs 82 to contact the top end of the notches 78.

The tape 47 is laterally guided by means comprising a shoulder provided on the plate 152 for guiding the right side of the tape (left side in FIG. 1) and a pair of pins 156 distanced from the shoulder 155 by the width 'of the tape 47. Each pin 156 is mounted in a recess 157 (FIG. 2) provided on the corresponding bar 79 and is pushed upwards by a compression spring 158, so as to normally project through a corresponding hole 148 (FIG. 1) of the lower plate 151 toward the upper plate 152.

Secured to the plate 151 is a shaft 159 slidably mounted Within two bored brackets 160 and 160 secured to the stationary reader frame 172. A compression spring 161 is located between a flange 162 of the shaft 159 and the bracket 160. Secured to the plate 151 is a lug 167 normally engaged by a latching tooth 163 against the action of the spring 161, whereby the plates 151 and 152 are normally held downwards in a closed or support guiding or reading position. The tooth 163 is integral with a bail 164 pivoted on a stationary shaft 165 and urged counterclockwise by a spring 166. The :bail 164 is operable by a manualy engaging lug 168.

The upper surface of the plate 151, forward and rearward with respect to the plate 152, is provided with a transverse line of projections 169 adapted to enter the possible holes of a code combination punched on the tape 47. Crossing each transverse line of projections 169 is a longitudinal line of projections 171 adapted to enter the feed holes of the tape 47.

The guiding device operates as follows:

When the reader is standing by manually depressing the lug 168 the bail 164 is rocked clockwise, whereby the tooth 163 releases the lug 1'67 together with the plates 151 and 152. These latter urged by the spring 161 are displaced upwards till the flange 162 is stopped by the bracket 160, thus reaching an open or support accepting position. In this position the pins 46 and 76 (FIG. 2), as well as the pins 156 remain below the upper surface of the plate 151, whereby the tape 47 to be read may be laterally inserted 3 between the palte 151' and the plate 152 till it is arrested by the shoulder 155 (FIG. 1).

The exact position of the inserted tape 47 is found by manually slightly displacing the tape 47 to cause the projections 169 and 171 to enter the code and the feed holes punched therein. Thereafter the plates 151 and 152 are lowered till the lug 167 is engaged under the tooth 163. In this manner the pins 76 of the slide 74 (FIG. 2) engage the feed holes of the tape 47, while the pins 46 enter the possible code holes thereof. The pins 46 in correspondence of which no hole has been punched on the tape 47 are displaced downwards against the urge of the springs 48. Simultaneously the pins 156 (FIG. 1) engage the side of the tape 47 opposite to that guided by the shoulder 155, thus preventing the tape from coming out laterally from the plates as long as the plates 151 and 152 are in the lower or closed position.

What is claimed is:

1. A guiding device for a punched record support of a reading or punching apparatus, comprising a pair of mutually secured plates between which said support is fed step by step, said plates being bodily displaceable from a support guiding position to a support accepting position for allowing said support to be inserted therebetween, wherein the improvement comprises means for slidably mounting said plates to be bodily displaced in a direction perpendicular to said record support, a latch normally retaining said plates in said support guiding position against the urge of a spring and manually releasable to cause said plates to be displaced to said support accepting position, and guiding means for laterally guiding said support and for preventing same from coming out laterally from said plates as long as said plates are in said support guiding position.

2. A guiding device according to claim 1, characterized in that one of said plates is provided with reference projections adapted to enter the code and feed holes of said support to facilitate the exact positioning of said support.

3. A guiding device for a punched tape support of a reading or punching apparatus, comprising a pair of bodily movable plates between which said support is fed step by step, said plates being displaceable from a tape guiding position to a tape accepting position for allowing said tape to be inserted therebetween, wherein the improvement comprises means for mounting said plates slidably in a direction perpendicular to said tape, a latch normally retaining said plates in said tape guiding position against the urge of a spring and manually releasable to cause said plates to be displaced to said tape accepting position, a shoulder provided on one of said plates for guiding one side of said tape and a pair of pins projecting through the other of said plates toward said one plate when said plates are in said tape guiding position, said pins being distanced from said shoulder as the width of said tape to guide the other side of said tape, said pins being ineffective when said plates are in said tape accepting position to allow said tape to be inserted laterally therebetween.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,190,519 6/1965 Nash 352-229 X ALLEN N. KNOWLES, Primary Examiner 

